Computer program ups its math 'IQ'

GOTHENBURG, Sweden, Feb. 14 (UPI) -- Computer scientists in Sweden say they've created a computer program that can score 150 on IQ tests where the average human scores 100.

IQ tests measure success on two types of problems: progressive matrices, which test the ability to see patterns in pictures, and number sequences, which test the ability to see patterns in numbers.

The most common math computer programs score below 100 on IQ tests with number sequences, but researchers at the University of Gothenburg said they thought they could come up with a smarter program.

"We're trying to make programs that can discover the same types of patterns that humans can see," researcher Claes Strannegard said.

Psychology is as important as mathematics in such tests, he said.

"1, 2, ... what comes next? Most people would say 3, but it could also be a repeating sequence like 1, 2, 1 or a doubling sequence like 1, 2, 4," he said.

"Neither of these alternatives is more mathematically correct than the others. What it comes down to is that most people have learned the 1-2-3 pattern."

The researchers said they included a psychological model of human patterns in their computer programs to create a mathematical model that mimics human-like problem solving.

"Our programs are beating the conventional math programs because we are combining mathematics and psychology," Strannegard said in a university release Monday.